Better This Time
by Dillyn Breeze
Summary: It's Valentine's Day, and Ben is determined to make it special for Abigail. Yes, Riley is in it, but it is very B/A centered. This is simply sweet, romantic fluff, so if you like that happy warm fuzzy feeling, read on. Ben and Abby are in love...aww... ;
1. Chapter 1

**A/N First, do not fret. I am still working on my other story. This was just a minor distraction (that turned out longer than I expected) because I like Ben and Abigail fics and think there needs to be more happy romantic feel-good fluff out there! I thought I'd have it ready for Valentine's Day, but obviously that didn't happen! Anyway, I'm not kidding. This is very fluffy. It may be sweet enough to cause cavities. You've been warned. **

* * *

Benjamin Gates was _not_ a natural born romantic. Any one of his ex-girlfriends could attest to that fact. Gentlemanly - yes. Charming - absolutely. Loyal and devoted – without a doubt. But when it came to romance, he needed a little work. It never seemed to bother him either; sure, his girlfriends might have complained a little, but eventually they just accepted that Ben showed his love in other ways. In fact, no one could ever say that Ben wasn't completely devoted to the people he loved; he would do anything for them. He'd even risk his own life to save the life of someone he loved. Wasn't that romantic?

Apparently not romantic enough.

That realization hit Ben like a ton of bricks the day he unintentionally hurt the woman he loved more than life itself. It was exactly one year ago today - Valentine's Day. And Ben really messed up.

His entire mindset changed that day with one glance into her disheartened eyes, knowing full well that he caused that disappointment. She deserved more from him. She deserved to be romanced, not just on Valentine's Day, but every day. His mind was made up, he was determined, he realized that she was worth every ounce of his effort. One problem remained however. Ben still had no idea how to do it.

And so Benjamin Gates called the one person he knew could best help him.

"_Hello?" came the familiar, soft voice on the other end of the line._

"_Hi…Mom…" His voice trailed off as he thought of how to explain his predicament to his mother. Finally, with a heavy sigh, he simply accepted defeat. "I need your help."_

_......................_

Ben stood in the doorway of the large master bedroom, leaning casually against the door and slowly sipping on his second cup of coffee that morning. His gaze was fixed adoringly on her, the soft, steady breathing that accompanied a gentle rise and fall of her chest, her body curled up comfortably under the blankets. It was a sight he didn't get to experience all that often. She was almost always up before him.

He was content to just watch her as she slept soundly and peacefully, wondering where her dreams might have taken her. After a few more minutes, Ben swallowed the final gulp of his coffee and took a few steps toward the bed. She was so still and looked so content that he debated in his mind whether to wake her or not.

But it was Valentine's Day and he was determined to do better this time.

Ben sat down on the edge of the bed and began to lightly run his fingers through her silky blond hair. It didn't take long for her to begin to stir as she woke from her sleep, murmuring things Ben couldn't understand.

"Abigail," he coaxed softly, his lips tracing her ear as he whispered. "Wake up, sweetheart."

Abigail groaned tiredly in response and continued muttering something to him. From the expression on her face, it looked as though she truly believed her words were coherent, which caused Ben to chuckle.

"Oh, is that so?" He teased, as though he understood whatever she was mumbling.

With her eyes still closed, she reached forward, trying to find his hand. When she did, she began pulling him back down to the bed.

"Why are you up?" Abigail asked groggily. "Come back to bed."

Ben kissed her on the cheek, resisting the temptation to crawl back under the warm, satin sheets and straight into her waiting arms.

"I can't, Abby, I have to leave soon."

Abigail's forehead wrinkled and a contemplative frown formed on her lips as she tried to remember what it was that he had to do that day. With nothing coming to mind, she pulled gently on his hand again.

"Come on…what's so important that you'd rather do it instead of cuddling in bed with me on my day off?" Abigail tried to persuade.

Ben laughed, leaning down to lightly kiss her lips. "There is absolutely nothing in this world that's more important to me than you," he told her and she smiled. "However, Dr. Kinsey's second year history students are anxiously awaiting part three of 'Finding the Templar Treasure.' I don't want to disappoint them when it's just getting to the best part."

Abigail opened her eyes and met his gaze, grinning curiously at him. "Is that the part of the adventure when you pulled me into your arms and kissed me?"

Ben chuckled, leaning in for another, longer kiss.

"I usually leave those details out," he told her, pulling away from her lips just slightly. "Some things should just be between you and me."

"Yeah, like…Valentine's Day morning?" She suggested, wrapping her arms around his neck as her lips sought his again. She pulled him down toward her and the kiss became more passionate, enticing him to stay.

Somehow Ben eventually found the resolve to pull himself away from her, and Abigail responded with her best pout. Ben laughed at how adorable she was, and stood up from the bed.

"I'm sorry, honey. I really would rather stay here with you," Ben told her. "But I'll be home later and we'll go out to dinner somewhere special, ok?"

Abigail sighed and took his hand again, knowing he still felt guilty about last year's Valentine's Day. "Ben, we don't have to go anywhere…I'll be happy just staying here with you tonight."

"No," Ben said adamantly. "I'm taking you out, and that's final."

"Ok, but –"

"No buts!" Ben interjected, placing his index finger against her lips. "I want to take the woman I love out tonight."

"Ok, ok!" Abigail surrendered. "I just don't want you to think you have to make up for last year, because you don't."

Ben leaned down and stole one last quick kiss. "I told you it would be better this time."

Abigail shook her head in wonder. "Once you get something in your head, there's no stopping you, is there?"

"Nope," Ben replied with a grin. "I'll see you a little later, ok?"

Abby nodded. "Ok. I love you."

"I love you too," Ben said, grabbing his glasses from the nightstand and turned to walk out the door. "Oh, by the way," he remembered. "There's a fresh pot of coffee waiting for you downstairs."

"There is?" Abigail asked in disbelief. Ben just smiled and went on his way.

Half an hour after Ben had left, Abigail was still lounging in bed, thoroughly enjoying not having to get up and go to work that day. The welcoming aroma of fresh coffee had drifted up from the kitchen to the bedroom, finally convincing her it was time to get up. She got out of bed and stretched, completely relaxed and ready to enjoy a day of doing things she rarely had a chance to do; watch her favorite mid-morning talk show, call her sister and have a nice long chat just to catch up, and later curl up on the couch with a good book and a cup of hot cocoa, extra marshmallows.

Of course she would have rather spent the entire day with Ben, but he had agreed weeks ago to do a special presentation on his treasure pursuits, in particular on discovering the Templar treasure, for a history professor at a local college who also happened to be one of his good friends. Abigail was happy he had these opportunities to relive those moments. He loved to tell the story; it was so evident in the way his eyes lit up like a Christmas tree when someone asked him about the quest to discovery or the treasure itself. Many times since then, Abigail had marveled over the fact that she had the honor of sharing such an important and defining moment in his life, and she would never, ever forget the look on his face when all of his pursuing finally came to fruition.

Smiling to herself as she reflected on those memories, Abigail poured herself a cup of coffee and added a little cream and sugar, then carried it over to the kitchen table and took her usual seat. The sun was shining, warming the kitchen considerably through the skylight above. It was an addition that she wasn't sure Ben would be keen on, but she had always thought kitchens should be brightly lit up with natural light, and the kitchen in their mansion only had a moderately-sized window above the kitchen sink. Surprisingly, Ben was quite agreeable to the addition. It may have had something to do with the fact that Abigail very pointedly, though quite sweetly, told him he'd be cooking most of his meals himself if she had to work in a dark kitchen, and by his pensive expression, she figured he liked that idea even less than having a skylight installed. And so she got her wish.

Ben had left the morning paper on the table for her, and she picked it up, automatically flipping through the pages to the Lifestyles section; she liked starting her morning with lighter, not so depressing reading, as was often the case with the stories in the News sections. As she pulled the section from the newspaper, a bright yellow post-it note that was stuck to the middle of the first page caught her attention.

_Happy Valentine's Day, Abby. I'll be thinking of you all day, counting the seconds __until I see you later. Love, Ben. _

An ear-to-ear grin immediately appeared on her face and she sighed happily. First he thought enough to make her a pot of coffee, then left a little note in the newspaper section he knew she'd turn to first. Abby wondered with eager curiosity what else he had up his sleeve. She felt a little guilty, knowing at least in part that his efforts were a result of her explosive reaction to last year's uneventful Valentine's Day, when she probably was more harsh with her words than she should have been...


	2. Chapter 2

_FLASHBACK_

Abigail sat silently at the dining room table, doing a slow burn as she stared at the clock overhead, watching the seconds continue to steadily tick by. Some Valentine's Day this was turning out to be.

Ben wasn't forgetful or unreliable, though his mind was always running on overload and sometimes things that got prioritized lower on Ben's list of importance managed to slip right out of his mind at times. Abigail didn't like being one of those things.

Correction. Abigail knew in her heart that she was never one of those things; Ben loved her. He would do anything for her and she knew that. Without even a second thought, Ben would walk through fire for her, would swim the length of the ocean for her, even give his life to save hers. But a normal day-to-day relationship didn't often require such heroic measures. And sometimes she just wished he thought more about the little things.

That morning she had left for work even before Ben was awake, hoping that he had something planned for when she got home. He certainly had all day to figure it out. By the time she'd gotten home that evening, he was gone, with no explanation of where he went, just a note on the kitchen table that said he'd be home later.

Ben usually mentioned where he was going if he left her a note, which actually made Abigail wonder hopefully that maybe he did remember and actually did have something planned. She busied herself around the house, straightening up the table, gathering up Ben's books and copious notes and putting them in a pile on his desk, even going upstairs to make sure she knew what outfit to change into if Ben came home and told her he was taking her out.

After she ran out of things to do, she found herself sitting at the dining room table, tapping her nails against the hard surface and anxiously waiting for him to walk through the door. It had just gotten to be a little after 8:30 when her hopes of any Valentine's Day plans were finally dashed.

Another twenty minutes went by before Abigail heard the sound of a car door closing out in the driveway. A few seconds later, the front door opened and Ben rushed in, seemingly in a hurry.

He breezed through the living room and dining room where Abigail was still seated, barely slowing down enough to give her a quick peck on the cheek and a mumbled 'Hey Beautiful.' Abigail just sighed disappointedly as he continued his rushed pace through the kitchen.

"How was work?" He called to her from the kitchen, where he'd tossed his jacket over a chair back.

"Fine," Abigail replied coolly.

Ben returned to the dining room and stood before her with a giddy grin and excitement shining in his eyes. Ah, yes…she'd definitely seen that look before. He was too hyped up to even notice her very apparent expression of discontent.

"New development with the Phaistos Disk," Ben announced. "Seems like the theory that it's connected to the Rongorongo code might actually be true."

"Really," Abigail stated with obvious disinterest, not even raising her eyes to look at him.

"Yeah, we still have a lot to uncover to see if it's possible, but this could be huge if it is, ya know? So many attempts have been made to decipher both of them, but only a few have actually considered a connection between them," he continued.

Abigail sighed heavily. "Is that where you've been all day?"

"Yeah," Ben said, glancing up at the clock. "I'm sorry it's so late…I lost track of time. What have you been up to?"

"Oh, not too much," Abigail replied. "Just waiting for you."

"I'm sorry, I should have called," he said, noting the apathy in her voice for the first time. She didn't look up at him; in fact, she had been staring at that same spot on the table since he'd walked into the room. His brow furrowed in concern. "Abigail?"

She finally willed herself to look up and meet the gaze that was now intently locked on her. Her eyes were glassy, and she knew it would only be a matter of seconds before tears began to overflow.

"Abby?" Ben asked again, this time quickly pulling a chair close and sitting down in front of her. "Sweetheart, what's wrong?"

He reached for her hand, but Abigail immediately jerked it back and abruptly stood up from the table. The smoldering fire inside was rapidly becoming a raging inferno of anger and sadness and hurt.

"Do you even know what day it is?" She inquired.

"What…day?" Ben repeated slowly, looking around for a calendar, but to no avail. He looked at her expression of utter disappointment and desperately tried to recall the date. But as his heart began to pound harder against his chest, he couldn't even think of what month it was. It wasn't her birthday. It wasn't their anniversary. "Umm…of course I know…it's…"

He had no idea. It was obvious.

Abigail threw her arms up in the air dramatically. "I don't even know why I bother with you!" She yelled as the first tears fell from her eyes.

Ben stood up from the table, looking stunned. "Abby, honestly…I don't…I mean, I…" he fumbled on his words.

"It's Valentine's Day, Ben!" She informed him.

Ben looked at her for a moment in confusion, processing her words. As he did, he had to literally bite the inside of his cheek and look down to the floor to avoid laughing. She was this upset over Valentine's Day? Hell, he could make any day Valentine's Day for her. He could easily fix this.

Or so he thought.

Ben took a deep breath and composed himself before looking back up at her. He cautiously took a couple steps toward her, but she simultaneously moved back with each of his steps and crossed her arms over her chest. It didn't take an interpreter to realize her body language was telling him not to come any closer.

_'This is stupid,'_ Ben thought, now getting slightly annoyed himself.

"Abigail, it's a commercialized hallmark holiday," Ben stated, trying to appeal to her practical sense.

"So?" She challenged. "That's all the more reason you should _at least_ know what day it is! Would it really be so much of an inconvenience to even acknowledge it? Acknowledge me? Even if you happen to think this commercialized hallmark holiday is a complete waste of time?"

Ben frowned. "Abigail, I love you. I don't need a designated day on the calendar to remind myself of that."

"How about reminding me?" She exclaimed.

"What?!" Ben protested defensively. "Are you saying I don't show you that I love you enough?"

"Maybe I am," she dared.

"Well," Ben said after a moment of letting those three words sink in. "By all means, why don't you tell me what it is that you need for me to do to prove to you that I love you. Because after everything we've been through, I think it's pretty clear…but you obviously need more convincing, so what is it Abigail? What do you need?"

Abigail shook her head in disgust. "That's the problem, Ben. You shouldn't need to ask me. And I shouldn't need to demand it of you." She turned her back to him and began walking out of the room. "I can't do this now," she muttered.

"No!" Ben called in aggravation, following her quickly through the living room. "Don't do that! Don't just walk away, Abigail. Tell me why you're angry. Tell me how to fix it and I will."

Abigail stopped mid-stride and thought for a moment before turning to face him again. "Ben, I know that you think Valentine's Day is ridiculous, but couldn't you give in just a little for me? I'm not asking you to lavish me with constant affection, and I don't expect you to sweep me off to Paris for dinner at the Jules Verne, or to buy me expensive gifts. But apparently it never even occurred to you that a card, or flowers, or even just a quiet night at home spent together might be something I'd appreciate. I didn't even get so much as a kiss on the cheek before I left for work."

"I was asleep, Abigail!" Ben gasped.

"I know…but…" She said, looking at him sadly before sighing and letting her gaze fall to the floor. She felt exhausted and just wanted to go upstairs and lay down. "I'm going upstairs for a little while."

Ben's eyes softened as he watched her ascend the stairs, and he suddenly felt like the biggest idiot on the planet. He felt guilty and ashamed and knew that he had definitely blown it this time. She meant everything to him; he should have remembered to do something special for her today.

Realizing that he'd already upset her enough for one day, he decided against following her upstairs and trying to smooth things over. She looked tired. Maybe she'd feel better if she slept for a bit and then they could work things out later.

That is, if she was willing to give him another chance.

Ben heard the bedroom door gently close shut and he sighed, turning around and heading to his library to think. Among hundreds of books chock-full of wisdom and knowledge, not one of them was going to help him with this latest mess he'd gotten himself into. He paced back and forth across the room in contemplation for nearly an hour, then finally landed in his favorite recliner for reading and let his head fall into his hands.

Was she right? Did he really not show her enough how desperately in love with her he was? A lump formed in his throat and his eyes became teary as the thought of life without her came to the forefront of his mind. His feelings were so strong for her that he had no idea what to say or what to do to fully convey them. But he couldn't lose her. Not again.

So romance wasn't his forte. Never had been. Then again, it never really bothered him much, and certainly not enough to think it was necessary to "learn" some romantic skills. But Abigail was different. He'd never known a woman like Abigail. She deserved his best, and if that meant he had to become Romeo Gates, he would do that. For her.

The question was how?

Abigail tossed and turned in bed, never actually falling into a deep enough sleep to be restful. She knew Ben hadn't followed her upstairs, and now even a few hours later, he still hadn't come to bed. She hated sleeping apart from him and never slept well when he wasn't there. Abigail had thought sure he'd be up to try to make things right.

She felt horribly guilty. Her words were too harsh and they came out in the heat of the moment, otherwise, some of those things would never have been said. They weren't entirely true, first of all. Besides, she knew she had her own faults…why did she expect Ben to be perfect?

She stared wide-eyed up at the ceiling for several minutes before deciding to get out of bed to find Ben. She knew him well enough to know he'd probably ended up in his library, engaging himself in some historical non-fiction.

Abigail was half correct. As she stood silently in the door frame, Ben was sitting in his favorite chair with his eyes closed. She couldn't tell if he was asleep or just thinking, but he was very quiet and very still. She walked softly across the room to his chair and he didn't open his eyes. Abigail could easily see from the redness around his eyes and tear stains on his cheeks that he'd been crying, which made her feel all the more awful.

Without a word, she climbed onto his lap and pulled her knees in, pressing her face into his neck and breathing in his warm, familiar scent, which somehow always made her feel safe and comforted and loved. Her head eventually settled perfectly in the space between his neck and shoulder, and she sighed contentedly just to be close to him. Seconds later, she felt his arms around her, but not tightly the way he usually held her. There was some distinguishable reluctance there.

"Can't sleep?" Ben questioned hesitantly, after several minutes of silence. He was wondering if the fact that she had taken it upon herself to seek him out and was now curled up in his arms meant that she wasn't angry anymore. But she should be. He didn't feel like he deserved to be let off the hook so easily.

"Not really," Abigail replied in barely a whisper. "It's cold up there without you."

Ben slowly let out the deep breath he'd been holding as he waited for her response and gently drew her closer to him. "I thought you needed some space. And…and I already upset you enough for one day."

There was a sadness in his tone that made Abigail wish she hadn't exploded at him earlier. He just seemed so defeated this time, unlike all of their other arguments when he was more than willing to battle with her.

"I'm sorry Ben…" She said softly after another awkward period of silence.

"Don't be," Ben replied in the same hushed tone. "You had every right."

"I didn't mean all those things."

"Yes you did," he told her. "And it's ok, because you're right."

"No, Ben…all of those things aren't true," she assured him. "I was just upset. I know you love me. I just thought…"

"You thought the man who claims to love you so much would think enough of you to remember Valentine's Day," Ben interjected. "And he should have. But he didn't…because… well, because he was too wrapped up in his own things. I don't want you to ever feel like I'm taking you for granted, Abigail. I'm sorry I screwed up today."

"I'm sorry I yelled at you," Abigail told him sincerely. "I know those things I said hurt you. You know how I get sometimes though, just keep on rambling, not knowing when to shut up…" She paused and Ben stifled a laugh.

"Who, you?" He joked.

There was another awkward, long pause between the couple, neither one quite knowing what to say next. Ben was still contemplating how to make things up to her, and Abigail was still worrying that her words hurt him more than she intended them to. He would never admit to it, but she could tell there was something different…something hesitant in the way he looked and talked and held her.

"What's wrong?" Ben asked, sensing that she was probably overanalyzing things again by her brooding silence. He ran his fingers lightly through her hair as he studied the faraway look in her eyes, fixated somewhere on the opposite side of the room. "What's going on in this crazy, beautiful head of yours?"

Abigail sighed heavily. "Nothing, Ben…it's nothing. I'm just tired."

"Abigail."

"No, really. I'm fine," she tried to assure him.

"Abigail."

With another deep sigh, she admitted defeat. "How do you do that?"

"I know you too well," he replied, giving her a gentle squeeze. "So what are you thinking about, cause it's obviously bothering you."

Abigail nervously shifted around, trying to avoid answering him, but it seemed he wasn't about to give up. His fingers gently tipped her chin up toward him, so their eyes finally met.

"Tell me," he whispered pleadingly, wanting more than anything to do something right for her that day.

"Do you…" Abigail started to say, nervously biting her lower lip as she looked up into his eyes.

"Do I what, Abby?" Ben pressed.

"Still…love me?" She asked with uncertainty, her vulnerability apparent.

Ben was thrown by the question and nearly laughed out loud. Instantly, he hugged her even tighter to him and leaned forward, letting his lips brush lightly over hers.

"Abigail, sometimes you say the most ridiculous things," he told her, then kissed her in a way that erased any doubt in her mind that his feelings for her had changed.

"I love you," she whispered as their lips parted.

"I'll do better next time," he told her definitively, kissing her lightly on the forehead. "I promise."

"Oh, Ben," she said softly, affectionately caressing his cheek with her hand. "You don't have to make up for anything."

"Yes I do," he insisted determinedly.


	3. Chapter 3

_Present_

After a lazy, relaxed morning of reading up on the news, drinking almost the entire pot of coffee, and lounging in front of the television watching the morning talk shows, Abigail decided shortly before noon that she should get ready for the day. She made her way upstairs to the ridiculously huge master bathroom and decided to enjoy a long, hot shower. Normally the mornings were so rushed that she was in and out within two or three minutes.

_'I need to have days off more often,_' she thought to herself, letting the warm water cascade over her body. After a good twenty minutes passed, Abigail finally turned off the water and dried off. A visible, hazy mist hovered around the bathroom; the steamy air was thick and almost stifling.

Abigail walked over to the sink at the counter, still rubbing a towel furiously in her wet hair. Standing before a very fogged up mirror, she was about to reach for her body lotion when she noticed the artwork in the mirror.

She burst out into a fit of laughter as she thought of the irony of Ben's latest romantic gesture. Ben Gates, who was meticulous about not having fingerprints on the mirrors or the glass tables or the windows—_especially_ the car windows—had drawn a large, lopsided heart in the middle of the mirror above the sink. Inside he had written 'I,' then a smaller heart, then a 'U.'

"Aww, Ben…" she said aloud. She smiled as she drew with her finger, 'I love you too,' beside his heart. Hopefully he'd get her message before attacking the mirror with Windex.

She left the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her, and headed to the closet to decide on something to wear. Without any thought, she slid the closet door open and almost instantly a box tipped over from the top shelf.

"What the…!" She exclaimed as her hands automatically shielded her face to avoid being pelted by the endless little silver foil balls toppling from the box. When it seemed the ambush had stopped, she moved her hands from her face and looked down at the floor. Her feet were completely covered and she was entirely surrounded by hundreds and hundreds of…

Hershey's kisses?

Abigail crouched down to the floor and shook her head in disbelief. "That man seriously had too much free time on his hands," she remarked lightheartedly.

As she unburied her feet from the mountain of chocolates, she noticed there was a red piece of paper sticking out from the pile. With a knowing smile, she picked it up and unfolded it.

_Hopefully these are enough kisses to last you til I get home…_

After gathering up all the foiled candies that had fallen out of the closet and putting them back in the box, Abigail returned to the first floor, ready to just sit down in her favorite oversized recliner with a mug of hot chocolate and a new mystery thriller book that she was just waiting for some free time to be able to start. She fished around in the cupboard for the large sixteen ounce mugs while her water was heating up in the kettle on the stove, and then added the cocoa mix to the cup. She strolled over to the pantry closet where they kept the mini marshmallows and reached inside to the shelf where they were. Or, at least, where they should have been.

"Where are the marshmallows?" Abigail asked aloud, shoving various food products around in the closet. Both she and Ben were quite organized when it came to where things were kept, and if somehow items ended up out of their proper location, there was usually one reason for it.

"Riley Poole…you better not have eaten all the marshmallows…" she said, gritting her teeth. "Or watch out…you are in so much trouble…"

Abigail had just about given up on looking for the marshmallows, and in fact had done her share of making a mess out of the closet, when she noticed out of the corner of her eye a brand new bag of mini marshmallows sitting in the corner of the counter.

"Ooh!" She exclaimed happily, closing the closet door without bothering to straighten anything up, and went to grab the unopened bag of marshmallows. She had to laugh as she noticed another bright yellow post-it note stuck to the bag that, in Ben's handwriting, said: _"Thought you might be looking for some of these. Riley finished the ones we had…I caught him trying to hide the evidence the other day." _

"Extra kisses for you later, Benjamin Gates," Abigail commented, ripping into the bag and loading up her hot chocolate with them.

After that momentarily dramatic ordeal, she was finally able to sit down, curled up with her favorite extra-soft fleece blanket, her beverage and her mystery novel.

She had been able to relax for over an hour, undisturbed, before the phone rang. She practically leapt out of the chair, the shrill ringing startling her from her reading as the story had just gotten to a pretty intense scene. She looked over at the phone for a minute, just to make sure it was going to ring again, and when it did she got up to answer it.

"Hello?" Abigail greeted.

"Hi Sweetie," Ben said, trying to talk over the chaos in the background on his end.

"Ben!" Abigail exclaimed, smiling at the sound of his voice. "Are you done with Dr. Kinsey's classes already?"

"Not yet…two more sections," Ben told her. "One's in about ten minutes, so if you can hear a bunch of noise in the background, it's college kids rushing around to their classes."

"Oh…" Abigail sighed disappointedly, hoping he was calling to say he'd be home early.

"So, um…I miss you," he said in a hushed tone, probably trying to avoid looks from passing students. "I wish I was there with you right now."

Abigail smiled. "I wish you were too."

There was a silent pause on both ends before Ben's voice perked up again.

"So how's your day been?"

Abigail laughed. "It's been…full of surprises so far…"

"Good ones I hope," Ben replied, and Abigail could tell he was grinning from ear to ear just by the tone of his voice.

Abigail laughed. "Very good ones, Ben. When did you have time for all of this?"

"I'm not telling," he teased. "I'm glad you're enjoying it though."

"Yes, I am. You really overdid it though," she told him.

"Did you find your surprise yet?" he asked.

Abigail grinned with curiosity. "Which one?"

"Ah," Ben said mysteriously. "You haven't found it…"

"Ben!"

"Gotta go, Abby," Ben told her hurriedly, the hall noise getting louder in the background.

"No, wait!" Abigail exclaimed. "What surprise? Where do I…?"

"You'll find it," he encouraged. "I'll see you later, ok? I love you."

"Love you t—"

The line went dead before she could finish, but she quickly put the phone down and took a quick look around the room for anything that he might have hid somewhere.

_What surprise…and how did he know I didn't find it? _She wondered to herself.

It was approaching 4:00 in the afternoon, and though she wasn't quite sure what time Ben would be home, she thought it would be a good time to start getting ready to go out later. She had spent at least an hour to an hour and a half looking through the mansion for Ben's surprise, but to no avail. She had reached a point of frustration where it was probably best to take a break from the search anyway.

Abigail stood in front of the full-length mirror in the bedroom, trying to decide if she approved of her dress choice, which was a bit less conservative than many of the formal dresses she often wore to the countless galas she and Ben were always being invited to.

Several months prior, she had been shopping specifically for one of those occasions, when an overly-helpful salesperson had told her he had "the perfect dress" for her. He appeared at the dressing room door holding up what would easily be described as a very bold and very sexy red dress. Abigail eyed the evening dress with uncertainty, thinking it might be a bit much for a stuffy, conventional party with the city's most austere, self-important characters in attendance. She and Ben always knew when it was time to make themselves scarce from those parties when it became less subtle that they found great amusement in the gathering of stuffed-shirts around them. The ride home was quite typically filled with laughing imitations of such dignified guests, and curious wondering about how Riley would fit in at one of those events (or what he might do to liven things up a bit.)

The salesperson was absolutely insistent that Abigail try that dress on, and just to get him to leave her alone for a minute, she agreed. The dress was floor length, slim-fitting with a side slit that went all the way up to mid-thigh level. The upper part of the dress consisted of a halter top with a plunging V-neck and rhinestone brooch, and a low open back. Sexy, yes. Galas, no. Still…she did like how it looked on her and knew Ben wouldn't have any complaints…so with very little additional convincing, she bought the red dress in addition to a more traditional evening gown for yet another festive ball.

Abigail had just finished inspecting her appearance when she thought she heard a knock at the front door. She started down the staircase at a casual pace, still not completely sure she'd actually heard knocking considering there was a doorbell and most people would have just pressed the button rather than rapped on the door. She had almost made it to the front entryway when a much more persistent pounding against the door left little doubt that someone was there.

"Ok, ok I'm coming," Abigail said, hurrying over to open the door. As she swung it open, she nearly got a converse-clad foot right in her shin as it continued to kick at the door, not realizing the door was open.

"Riley!" Abigail exclaimed, laughing at the sight before her. There was Ben's best friend, holding a stack of books and papers in one hand, laptop bag slung over his shoulder, and a huge bouquet of colorful roses in the other, which he was holding high enough that it blocked his face.

"What's so funny?" Riley asked, trying to peer around the flowers.

"Nothing," Abigail replied, trying to hold back her giggles. She held the door open and ushered Riley inside. "Want me to take something for you?" She offered.

"No no," Riley declined. "Just lead me to a table so I can put some of this down."

Abigail took his forearm gently and pulled him into the kitchen where he immediately let the pile of books and loose papers tumble to the table. He let out an exasperated sigh and set the flowers down more carefully. Finally, he turned to Abigail, about to say something but lost all concentration as he was caught off guard by her stunning ensemble.

"Wow, Abby…you look…" Riley started, pausing to think of an appropriate adjective, one a little more mature than 'smokin' hot,' which unfortunately was the only thing that came to mind. He wasn't used to seeing so much…skin. "You look, um…spectacular!"

Abigail smiled and looked down at her dress nervously. "You really think so? It's not too much is it?"

Riley shook his head slowly, almost hypnotically.

"Think Ben will like it?" She asked, not really noticing the trance-like state he seemed to be stuck in.

"Uh huh," Riley nodded.

Abigail looked at him strangely. "So…why did you stop by again? You know Ben is giving his presentation at the college, right?"

Riley looked at her blankly for a few seconds, trying to remember why he had stopped by, but as he looked down at the table, everything clicked again.

"Oh, yeah I know that," Riley said. "In fact, that's kinda why I'm here." He held up the bouquet of roses. "These are for you. Happy Valentine's Day."

"Aww, Riley! How sweet of you!" Abigail exclaimed excitedly.

"Well actually, they're not from me," he corrected and she looked at him in bewilderment. "They're from Ben. He wanted me to bring them to you because, as nothing is ever simple with Ben, this isn't a dozen of _just any_ ordinary roses."

"Oh?" Abigail asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Sit down," Riley instructed and Abigail did so while Riley searched haphazardly through the papers stuck inside one of his books. "I just gotta find my notes."

"Your notes?" Abby asked.

"Yeah," he said, pulling out the piece of paper he was apparently looking for. "Please, like I memorized all of this happy sappy rose-colors-mean-something business."

Abigail laughed and waited patiently for him to figure out what he was doing. Finally, he seemed to have command over the flowers and his notes and smiled as he handed her a light purple rose first.

"According to Ben, when you give someone a purple rose, it means love at first sight," Riley explained. "So I guess he—"

"Well, that's not according to Ben," Abigail interjected.

"Huh?" Riley questioned, not sure what she was talking about.

"I mean, Ben didn't just make that up," she explained. "The color of roses have held symbolic meaning for centuries, so Ben just took the time to figure out what those meanings were."

Riley looked at her in confusion. "Your point?"

"I'm just telling you because you said 'according to Ben.'"

"Well thank you for clearing that up," Riley said with some sarcasm. "Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to finish my presentation of flowers so my end of the deal is fulfilled."

"The deal?" Abigail asked.

"Nevermind that," Riley insisted. "So as I was saying, Ben wanted you to know he fell in love with you at first sight."

Abigail burst out into laughter. "No he didn't!"

"Abigail!" Riley exclaimed exasperatedly.

"I'm sorry, Riley," she apologized, still giggling. "It's just that…well, I didn't exactly put much stock in the story the two of you brought me when we first met, so I can't imagine he left my office thinking he was in love with me!"

"Look," Riley told her through gritted teeth, pointing at the purple rose in her hand. "Purple rose. Ben says he fell in love the first time he ever saw you, you have the purple rose to prove it, but if you still want to argue it, wait til you can argue it with him, ok? I'm just the messenger. Now silence yourself so I can continue!"

Abigail nodded, still trying not to laugh. Riley was clearly uncomfortable with this mission that Ben had given him, so now she was wondering what he was getting for doing it.

"Ok, here's the next one," Riley said, handing her a light pink rose. "According to the flower experts of the world…_and Ben_…this one means he thinks you're gentle, elegant and graceful, and he has a deep admiration for you." Riley paused, looking down at his paper to make sure he had that correct. "Gentle? Well personally I don't see the connection, but that's just my opinion…"

Abigail leaned forward and smacked him in the shoulder. "Riley!"

"See what I mean? What was gentle about that?"

He proceeded to hand her a white rose to symbolize Ben's steadfast loyalty and affection toward her, a deep pink rose to show his appreciation for everything she is to him, and a bright yellow rose for true friendship in addition to a loving relationship.

"Ok, now here are these orange ones that are supposedly significant of desire, and I guess he thought he needed to give you two of those," Riley said, handing her the orange roses. "Which…I don't know, you can figure that one out on your own. I don't want to know anything about Ben's desirous feelings."

Abigail laughed, and Riley finally thrust the last three roses into her hands, all of them red.

"Even I know what the red ones mean," Riley said. "Ben loves you. A lot."

"Aww, thank you Riley, that was very sweet," Abigail told him sincerely. She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. "He's lucky to have you as a friend."

"Yeah, well…so are you!"

"I know," she smiled. Getting up from the table, she went over to the sink to get a vase of water for the flowers, but as she was doing so, noticed something curious.

"Hey Riley?" She asked.

"Hmm?"

"You know, there are only ten roses here."

"Well how many do you need?" Riley asked incredulously.

"No, it's not that. You just said there was a dozen here, but there's only ten."

"Crap…" Riley muttered, wondering where he must have lost the other two. "My bad…"

"Don't worry about it," Abigail assured him. "Ben won't notice, I'm sure."

As soon as she'd finished the statement, the phone started ringing.

"It's him!" Riley exclaimed. "He knows I lost your flowers!"

Abigail laughed, walking over to the phone. "Ben may be many extraordinary things, but he isn't psychic," she told him. "Hello?"

"Abby?" came the hesitant voice of her beloved.

"Ben? What's up, sweetie?"

Riley jumped up from the chair. "I told you!" He declared in a loud whisper.

"I have some…bad news…" Ben continued, dragging his words out.

Abigail felt her heart sink. "What happened?"

"I didn't mean to do this, Abby, I swear," he assured her.

"Ben?"

There was a deep sigh on the other end of the phone. "I was just reminded that I agreed to meet with some historians from out of the country about the authenticity of some of the Cibola artifacts," he explained. "Honestly Abigail, I didn't realize at the time that it was Valentine's Day, or I never would have agreed, especially after I really blew it last year and—"

"Ben," Abigail interrupted and he stopped talking. "Ben, it's ok. You've already given me an amazing Valentine's Day. Go to your meeting, and we'll have dinner at home when you get back, ok?"

"Are you sure?" Ben asked. "You're not mad?"

"Mad? How could I be mad after everything you've already done for me today?"

Ben sighed. "Ok…but I feel awful, Abby. I'll make it up to you later, ok?"

A sly smile formed on Abigail's lips. "I'm sure you will."

"Thanks for understanding," he told her. "I love you."

"I love you too," she responded. "I'll see you when you get home."

Abigail hung up the phone and sighed. Riley watched her as she made her way back to the table and slouched down into the chair, obviously disappointed about the conversation she'd just had with Ben.

"What's wrong?" Riley asked.

"Oh, nothing," Abigail said, trying to act like it wasn't a big deal. "He forgot about a meeting he had later, so we won't be able to go out tonight, but really it's ok…we can go out anytime."

Riley could see the disappointment in her eyes. She wasn't angry with Ben; it was obvious that she was just really looking forward to capping off her Valentine's Day with a romantic evening with him.

Little did she know…

Riley sprung up out of his seat enthusiastically and grinned at her. "Come on, Abby! Let's go out!"

"What?" Abigail asked, her brow furrowed in confusion.

"Well, why waste a perfectly good evening, especially since you're all dressed up and ready to go out. I'll take you to dinner at least," he offered.

Abigail smiled, touched by his sweet gesture. "Aw, thanks for the offer Riley, but…I think I'll just wait for Ben…"

"Come on," Riley pressed. "You look too nice not to go out. You spent all that time getting ready for tonight, so let's go do something. Then when we get back, Ben should be home and you two can…well…do whatever it is you do."

Abigail stood up from her chair and took a few dishes that were lingering on the table from earlier over to the sink. "It's a tempting offer," she remarked.

"Good, then get all your girly things and let's go," Riley insisted.

"All my girly things?" Abigail asked, laughing.

"You know, your purse and your makeup and your backup lip gloss and your extra jewelry and –oh hey," he said, noticing she wasn't wearing the necklace Ben had gotten her. "Ya know, that necklace Ben got you would match the dress you're wearing perfectly—"

Abigail's head whipped around instantly and her eyes widened as she gaped at Riley. "Necklace?"

"Oh…" Riley said, slapping a hand over his mouth as he realized she didn't know about it yet. "I guess he didn't give it to you yet? But wait, he said you would have it before he gave you the—" He stopped talking, and looked at Abigail, smiling sheepishly. "I think I spoiled his surprise."

"No you didn't," Abby said excitedly. "What necklace? Was that the surprise he was talking about?"

"When?"

"This afternoon when he called, he asked me if I found the surprise yet and then seemed to know that I hadn't. But I still haven't. Do you know where it is?"

"Uhh…" Riley stalled. "Maybe?"

Abigail lunged toward him, grabbing his arms forcefully. "Where is it, Riley? Please…it's been making me crazy all day trying to figure out where he hid it!"

"Maybe you haven't been looking hard enough."

"Riley!" Abigail yelled, shaking him by the arms. "Tell me!"

"Nope."

"What?"

"No…I already told you what it was, so you're just gonna have to find it yourself." Riley told her with a clever grin.

"Riley!"

"Abigail!"

"Ugh!" She exclaimed in frustration. "The two of you are a deadly combination!"

"Thank you," Riley said, still smiling. "Got any hot pockets?"

Abigail let his arms go and sighed in defeat. "I don't know. Go look if you want."

"Aww, I don't feel like it though…" he whined. "Maybe you could check and make me one?"

She looked at him suspiciously. "Ten minutes ago you were gung ho on taking me out for dinner. Now you want me to make you a hot pocket?"

"Just a snack," he told her. "Then we can go get dinner."

Abigail shook her head in bewilderment.

"Come on," Riley pleaded. "If you do…maybe I'll give you a hint about where your surprise is…"

Abigail's eyes lit up and she shot up out of the chair. "You better not be messing with me."

"Would I do that to you?" Riley asked, batting his eyelashes innocently at her.

Abigail went to the freezer and found a ham and cheese hot pocket, removed the wrapping and put it on a plate. She took a quick glance at Riley who was still grinning mischievously and then took the plate over to the microwave. She opened the door and was just about to put the plate in the microwave when she noticed there in the center of the rotating glass disc was a small box, neatly wrapped in red and silver paper.

Abigail shrieked excitedly and shoved the plate with Riley's hot pocket off to the side of the counter and pulled the gift out of the microwave, beaming as she unceremoniously ripped the paper off of the box.

"Why would he put it in the microwave?" Abigail inquired curiously.

"He thought you'd be making some hot chocolate this afternoon to sip on while you read some fascinating piece of literature," Riley explained.

"Ohhh," Abigail said. Now it made sense. "And he was right…except that I used the kettle to heat up my water instead of the microwave."

Abigail popped open the box to reveal a stunning white gold necklace with a three-stoned pendant—a rich, red ruby with sparkling white diamonds on either side of it. It was beautiful, and really did match her dress perfectly. She admired it for a few minutes before even taking it out of the box to put it on.

"It's beautiful," she said, running her fingers lightly over the gemstones. "I'll be right back, I'm gonna go put it on."

"Hey, what about my hot pocket?" Riley asked as she breezed past him on her way to a room with a mirror.

"You know how the microwave works!" She called back, disappearing into the bathroom.

Riley shook his head. "Women…"


	4. Chapter 4

About twenty minutes later, Riley had finally convinced Abigail to let him take her to dinner, which he hadn't realized was going to be such a difficult part of Ben's plan. But finally she agreed, insisting however, that she be home before Ben got home. Riley told her that wouldn't be a problem. And he knew it definitely wouldn't be.

"Where are we going?" Abigail asked as Riley headed straight to the highway. He seemed to know exactly where he was going, which had Abigail somewhat puzzled.

"You'll see," was Riley's only reply.

"We're not leaving D.C. are we?" She asked after a few minutes of just listening to the radio in the background.

"No."

"Are you sure we'll be back before Ben gets home?"

"Yes."

"Are we going to—"

"Hey Abigail?" Riley cut her off.

"Hmm?"

"Do you ever stop talking?"

Abigail huffed and leaned back in her seat. They continued to drive for what seemed like forever in rush hour D.C. traffic, and Abigail tried to refrain from asking too many questions, though thousands were flooding her mind at that particular moment.

Riley took an exit and drove toward the Penn Quarter neighborhood, and Abigail looked at him curiously.

"You're not taking me to work are you?"

Riley looked over at her and laughed. "No…I think you're a little overdressed for the Archives."

"Are we having dinner with the President?"

Riley cocked an eyebrow and gave her a look of incredulity. "Ben might be able to pull that off, but I certainly cannot. Besides, he probably is spending Valentine's Day romancing the First Lady."

Finally resigning herself to the fact that Riley was not about to tell her where they were going, Abigail just enjoyed the view of historic D.C., actually able to enjoy the scenery since she didn't have to pay attention to the traffic. She had gotten so consumed by all of the lights and action going on around her, that she didn't happen to notice Riley pull into a parking lot and park his car until it actually came to a stop and he turned off the ignition.

Riley came around to the passenger side of the car and opened the door for Abigail, offering her his hand as she stepped out of the car.

"Riley, this is the Hotel Monaco."

"You're very observant, Abigail."

"So what are we doing here?" She asked, holding loosely onto his arm as he escorted her inside.

"You sound nervous."

"I'm not nervous! I just want to know what's going on!"

"Patience isn't your forte, is it?" Riley teased.

"Riley, the restaurant for this hotel is adjacent to this building. So what are we doing inside the hotel lobby?"

Riley stopped walking and looked around the lobby suspiciously before leaning in close to Abigail's ear. "Well…I thought I'd sweep you away for a romantic rendezvous while I had the chance…"

Abigail made a horrified face and pushed him away from her. "That's not funny."

"Oh come on, I'm just kidding," he said, laughing. He held out his arm again for her and she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I'm waiting right here until you tell me what's going on."

Riley rolled his eyes. How did Ben deal with this on a daily basis? She could be such a five-year-old!

"Fine," he replied. "You stand right there and don't disappear."

Abigail watched as he went to the front desk and spoke to a manager for a few minutes before returning to her.

"Alright, you want to know what's going on?"

Abigail nodded.

"We _are_ going over to the restaurant...but, I stayed here a couple nights last week and I think I left something behind. I just talked to the manager and he said the staff didn't find anything, but since no one has stayed in that room since I was there, he agreed to let me go check around. So do you mind if I do that first?"

Abigail looked at him very suspiciously. "You stayed here?"

Riley nodded. "Yeah, I had to leave my apartment for…fumigation."

"Why didn't you come stay with us?" She prodded, following along as he walked toward the elevator.

"I didn't want to inconvenience you two."

"Ha!" Abigail exclaimed. "Since when does _that_ matter to you?"

Riley turned and gave her the evil eye, and she laughed.

"Plus it was a free stay in a luxury hotel," he added.

"Free? How'd you manage that?"

"Not my bug problem," Riley said. "Landlord had to put me up somewhere."

"And he just so happened to pick one of the most luxurious hotels in D.C.?"

"Well…with a little coaxing…" Riley smiled innocently at her. "I told him I'd keep his bug problem under wraps."

Abigail laughed. "I see…so you blackmailed him?"

"You make it sound so horrendous. Let me assure you, Abigail, he'll be thanking me in the long run for not scaring off any future residents."

They took the elevator up to the fourth floor and walked down the ornately decorated corridor to a room close to the end of the hall. Abigail was admiring the décor, always having been curious about the famed extravagant accommodations, but she herself had never actually been inside.

"Want to have a look?" Riley asked, as he unlocked the door and pushed it open.

Abigail nodded and entered the darkened room with Riley. He turned around immediately and halted her from walking any further into the room.

"Wait right here for a second, ok?" He instructed.

"What? Why?" She asked.

"I'm gonna see if the adjoining room is being used, and if not, I'll show you the whole suite…ok?"

"But why do I have to stand here?"

Riley sighed in frustration. Ben would owe him big time. "Stop asking questions and just stand there. And don't move!"

Abigail frowned, but stood patiently in the entranceway as he disappeared into the adjoining room. A minute went by and he didn't return. How long did it take to make sure the room wasn't occupied? Another couple minutes went by and she began to get a strange feeling about things.

"Riley?" She called out, placing her hands on her hips as she grew more and more impatient, wondering where he'd disappeared to. "Get back here!" She instructed.

With no response from the other room, Abigail took a few cautious steps into the room, and looked around. They hadn't bothered to switch on the lights, so it was a little difficult to see inside, but from what she could tell it was a very spacious room, beautifully decorated, with a large king-sized bed and about fifty pillows on top, a huge flat screen tv, and as she peeked around the corner into the bathroom, she saw a large Jacuzzi.

"Wow, nice…" she commented.

Abigail was just about to turn and continue her quest to find Riley, when she suddenly felt a presence behind her. Before she had time to react, two arms had circled around her waist from behind, and she felt warm breath against her ear. She smiled, and her heart began to beat faster as she recognized instantly who was behind her.

"Do you _ever_ follow directions, Dr. Chase?" He asked in a low voice close to her ear.

Abigail leaned back into his body, and he hugged her tight.

"I haven't a clue what you could possibly be talking about," Abigail replied innocently.

He chuckled softly as he gently swept her hair to the side and his lips took position on her neck, placing leisurely kisses against her smooth skin. A soft moan escaped Abigail's lips and she felt herself growing weaker as he continued his deliberate, agonizing trail of kisses down her neck and over her shoulder. "Ben…"

"I know I heard Riley tell you not to move," he explained in between kisses.

Abigail's eyes closed automatically as she gave in to the sensation of his lips on her skin. "Oh…that…" she muttered.

"I was trying to surprise you," Ben told her.

Abigail turned around in his arms and looked into his eyes. "You've been surprising me all day, Ben."

He grinned excitedly. "Did you like it?"

Abigail smiled as she moved even closer to him, lightly brushing her lips against his in a tender kiss. Ben's hand glided up her back until it reached her neck, and he subtly drew her closer, deeper into what was becoming a very steamy and sensual kiss. The desire had been building all day, and they were relieved to finally be together to express it.

"Did that answer your question?" Abigail asked when they parted, her lips still lingering tentatively over his.

"Mmhmm," Ben affirmed, still a little dazed.

Abby laughed at the dreamy expression on his face and took a couple steps back to take him in fully. The sharp black suit, complete with a silver shirt and black and silver striped tie, surprised her to see him in, considering it was not what he had left the house earlier wearing.

"Mm, don't you look handsome," Abigail marveled. "When did you have time to change?"

"Well, I was here getting things ready while Riley was working on getting you here," Ben explained. "And from the sounds of it, you didn't exactly make it an easy task for him…"

"What did he tell you!?" Abigail exclaimed, her eyes narrowing as she imagined what sort of exaggerated story Riley told Ben. "I was not that difficult! I just wanted to be home when you got home."

Ben laughed, pulling her into his embrace again, and he kissed the top of her head. "I love you, you know that?"

Abigail smiled up at him. "I do know that. And I love you too."

"Are you hungry?" Ben asked.

She nodded, letting Ben take her hand and lead her to the table against the windows.

"Did you order us room service?" Abby asked.

Ben pulled her chair out for her and she sat down, and he sat down across from her. He grinned slyly at her. "Even better than that."

He cleared his throat loudly, and seconds later, the door joining the two rooms burst open, causing Abigail to nearly jump out of her skin. Her head whipped around to see who was approaching them, and she quickly covered her mouth to hide her laughter as Riley walked toward them holding two menus. It wasn't the fact that it was Riley that made her chuckle…it was his "new look" for the evening.

Riley stopped at the edge of their table and flashed the couple a confident smile, which seemed to accentuate the fact that he had painted a thin mustache on his upper lip, perhaps to complete his new "French" look. He was wearing a tuxedo that appeared to be a little too big for him, a traditional black beret on his head, and a little nametag that said "Pierre."

Abigail eyed Ben, who appeared to be quite composed and taking things rather seriously, as Riley put a menu in front of each of them.

"Bienvenue au restaurant Le Jules Verne," Riley said enthusiastically in a well-rehearsed French accent. "Mon nom est Pierre LePoole, et je serai votre serveur."

"Merci!" Abigail played along, answering him with one of the only French words she actually knew. She wasn't entirely sure what he had said, but she assumed he was introducing himself as their server for the evening.

"Ok that's all I know," Riley said. "It was hard enough memorizing that."

Ben and Abigail laughed and Abby assured him that she was very impressed with his bilingual skills. Riley instructed them, in English, to open their menus to the Entrées section, where he would be happy to point out the restaurant's specialties.

"Are these really menus from the Jules Verne?" Abigail asked in amazement. They certainly looked authentic.

Ben just smiled at her look of impressed surprise. Seeing how happy she was in that moment convinced him that all of the tedious planning and attention to detail he had to put into arranging the day was completely worth it.

"Of course they are!" Riley told her, pretending to be offended that she should ask such a thing. "Where do you think you are? Some hotel in Washington?"

Abigail giggled. "My mistake…I sincerely apologize, Pierre."

"May I suggest the chicken francaise? It's our special dish of the night," Riley explained.

Ben leaned forward across the table, shielding his mouth with his hand so Riley couldn't see what he was whispering to Abigail.

"It's the _only_ dish of the night," Ben said softly, causing Abigail to laugh.

"In that case…I think that sounds lovely, Pierre," Abby told him.

"I'll have the same," Ben added.

Riley nodded, scribbling the order onto a small notepad, as though he'd have trouble remembering what they ordered later.

"Some wine, sir?" Riley asked Ben.

"Certainly," Ben answered. "Could you bring us your finest bottle of French Chardonnay?"

Riley's eyes widened. "The _finest_?"

"Of course," Ben concurred. "Would you bring anything other than the finest for this beautiful woman?"

Riley unsuccessfully tried to hide a smirk, obviously dying to add his own comment to Ben's rhetorical question, but managed to just nod and turn around to return to the other room. After he disappeared, Ben reached across the table and took Abigail's hand, gently stroking it with his thumb.

"You're amazing," Abigail said in awe, gazing into his eyes lovingly. "I can't believe you did all of this."

"So you like it?"

"I like it," Abby confirmed, her eyes sparkling as tears of joy began to cloud her eyes. "And I love you."

Ben squeezed her hand. "You know I'd do anything to make sure that smile never left your face."

Riley returned to their table with two wine glasses and a bottle of Chardonnay, and poured them each a glass. Ben thanked him for his attentive service, and Riley held out his hand for a tip. Abigail laughed at the look Ben gave Riley, but Riley seemed set on not moving until Ben gave him something, so he reached into his pocket for his wallet and pulled out a fifty dollar bill, which Riley quickly snatched up and pocketed as Ben handed it to him.

Riley went to the other side of Ben to the window and pulled open the curtains. "You should be enjoying the spectacular view of Paris," he told them.

Abigail's breath caught in her throat as she turned to look out the window, and instead of peering out at downtown Washington D.C., she was looking at a very realistic Paris scene. She realized, upon closer examination, that it was a computer-generated scene that Riley managed to have projected on a mirrored background that he and Ben covered the actual window with.

"Ohmigosh," Abigail exclaimed. "How did you do that!?"

"Open the curtains?" Riley asked.

"No," Abby said. "How did you make that Paris scene? And where's the Eiffel Tower?"

Riley cleared his throat. "Uh…you're sitting in it?"

Abigail laughed, blushing with slight embarrassment. "Oh yeah…"

"Like the view?" Ben asked.

"Of course! You guys are absolutely crazy!" She declared.

Riley pointed at Ben. "Big time crazy. Sitting right here."

"Crazy in love," Ben beamed, raising Abby's hand to his lips and tenderly kissing it.

Riley rolled his eyes and pretended to gag. "Excuse me while I go throw up," he said dryly, quickly disappearing into the other room.

After finishing their first glass of wine, Ben stood up and held out his hand for Abigail. "Dance with me?"

Abigail smiled and accepted his invitation. He led her just a few feet to the center of the room and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her tight against him. Seconds later, soft music filled the room and Abigail looked around to see where it was coming from.

"Is there anything you haven't thought of?" She teased.

Ben clasped her hand in his and held it against his heart. "I tried."

"I think you did better than 'try,'" she told him.

"I promised you it would be better this time."

The couple swayed gently to the music in comfortable silence for several minutes, just enjoying being in each other's arms and completely in love.

"I don't think I've told you yet, but you look absolutely stunning tonight, Abigail," Ben complimented her, breaking the silence between them.

Abigail raised her head and looked into his eyes. "I was hoping you'd like it."

Ben smiled back at her, and he realized his heart was racing just as fast as it did the first time he ever held her in his arms. He wondered if she had any idea what kind of effect she had on him, even after all the time they'd been together.

A few moments later, Ben gradually dipped his head and covered her lips with his own. Abigail's eyes instantly fluttered closed and her hand made its way up his back and rested on the back of his neck, pulling him closer to her. Ben's fingertips leisurely trailed up and down her back as the kiss turned from sweet and tender to sultry and urgent, both of them making soft sounds of desire and contentment as they tried desperately to prolong their connection to the last possible moment. Abigail's fingers slid through his hair and Ben shivered with the tingling sensation of her nails massaging his head. He was always amazed at the intense emotions that just her simplest touches were able to stir up within him.

An eternity passed before either were willing to break away from the other. Even after they had, Ben pulled her even closer to him and Abigail nestled her head on his shoulder, still making soft purring sounds as he continued to rub her back.

"That feels so good, Ben," she sighed, her voice so relaxed it seemed she might fall asleep standing up in his arms. "I should wear open backs more often…"

"No objections here," Ben said approvingly, and kissed her cheek. "But we better sit down and have dinner, or I'm gonna put you to sleep."

"One more minute," Abby pleaded.

"Anything you'd like," he said to her, barely a whisper, his breath like fire against her ear. "I could never say no to you."

Abigail melted, holding him tightly, feeling him strong against her. He always knew just what to say, just how to look at her, just how to touch her.

Ben could feel her entire body relaxing and he knew it would only be a matter of time before she was too relaxed to do anything but sleep. With another kiss against her forehead, Ben gradually pulled out of their embrace and led her back to the table so they could have dinner. He had just a couple more surprises left before he wanted her drifting off to sleep for the night…

As they waited for Riley to bring out their dinner, Ben told her about his day at the college and with Dr. Kinsey's classes. His eyes lit up with excitement as he told her about some of the questions the "kids" came up with, a few of which he'd actually never been asked before, which impressed him all the more. Abigail sat back and listened attentively; she loved his stories despite the fact that she'd heard them over and over again. He always told them with such animation, it was just like living the adventure all over again with him. Abigail sighed happily. He really would make a wonderful father…

_Did I really just think that?_ Abigail wondered, quickly shaking her head as if to dismiss the thought entirely. They had barely talked about marriage, let alone starting a family.

Riley appeared at the table a few minutes later with their dinners, which actually looked delicious. He placed a dish in front of each of them, poured another glass of wine for them and asked if they needed anything else.

"Wow, Riley…" Abigail started and he shot her a look of disapproval. She giggled as she realized her 'mistake.' "Sorry, I mean Pierre. Did you cook this yourself?"

"Of course!" he exclaimed, as though it was the most ridiculous question he'd ever heard.

"I didn't realize you had such impressive culinary skills," she told him. "All this time you've been spending at our place because all you know how to do is microwave a frozen meal…hmmm…"

Riley was caught at a momentary loss for words. "Er…um…I don't know what you're talking about…you must have me confused with someone else."

Abigail laughed. "Oh, I see. It must be that Riley character you look so much like."

"Well," Riley said conclusively, trying to end the current conversation before he was expected to fend for himself at mealtimes on a more regular basis. "Enjoy your dinner! Call if you need anything else."

"Thank you," Ben and Abigail said at the same time.

"That was mean," Ben said with a smirk after Riley had disappeared again.

"What?" Abigail asked innocently. "I didn't know he could cook!"

"He's been practicing this dish…which you haven't tried yet, so don't jump to conclusions about it's edibility yet."

"Oh, now _that_ was mean!" Abigail scolded.

Ben arched an eyebrow. "Yeah, well, you didn't try his first attempt."

Abby laughed, shaking her head in wonderment. "You two are so cute. So…I know _your_ motivation for all of this, but how in the world did you get him to be so agreeable to helping you?"

"We came up with a little deal."

"Oh that's right..." Abigail recalled Riley mentioning something about a deal when he was giving her the roses earlier. "And what kind of deal did you make?"

Ben just smiled, meeting her curious gaze with a look that Abigail knew meant that he was not about to tell her anything.

"Come on Ben," she pleaded. "I'm curious!"

"I can't tell you now," he told her, still grinning.

"But you can tell me later?"

"Yes…after…"

"After what?" Abigail pressed.

"Do you like your dinner?" Ben quickly changed the subject.

Abigail huffed loudly. "Benjamin Gates!"

"It's actually pretty good," he continued. "You should stop asking so many questions and enjoy your meal."

"Fine, have it your way," Abby said with a threatening undertone, her eyes narrowed in frustration as she watched him attempting to hold back his laughter. "But you'll get what you deserve, Ben..."

Ben gave her a knowing wink. "I'm counting on it."

Abigail shook her head, unable to hide her own smile at that point. But instead of pressing him any further, she began to enjoy her dinner and the couple went back to having light, casual conversation.

About half way through the meal, Riley came back out to check on them, right as Ben appeared to be getting ready to say something important. Abigail could tell just by the way his tone had shifted from fun and lighthearted to more serious, and the creases in his forehead became more prominent the way they always did when he was in deep thought.

"Everything ok here?" Riley asked.

"Everything's great!" Abigail said enthusiastically, flashing him a warm smile. "You did a wonderful job with dinner."

"Thank you, Abigail. Ben?"

"Yeah, we're good," Ben said dismissively. Abigail shot him a perplexed glance, but Riley appeared unphased. Instead, his grin grew as he produced a violin that he had been holding behind his back and began to play – or more accurately, attempted to play.

Ben jaw dropped in disbelief at the painful screeching sound being generated from the instrument and he glared at Riley with utter indignation. Now was not the time for Riley to be interrupting with such a mood killer!

Abigail laughed, leaning closer to the window and away from the loud, out-of-tune playing by Riley, but when she glanced over at Ben, he was tapping his fingertips on the table the way he always did when he was very annoyed. There was no mistaking the look of complete irritation on his face either.

"Riley!" Ben finally snapped.

Riley abruptly stopped playing and looked at Ben questioningly.

"_What are you doing?"_ Ben hissed.

"Umm…serenading you?" Riley replied. "I read that it's a romantic thing to do."

"Perhaps if you actually know how to play!" Ben retorted.

Abigail suddenly reached across the table and grabbed Ben's hand. "Ben, sweetie, it's ok. Let him play."

Ben turned to her with an expression that had "Are you kidding me?" written all over it.

"Thank you, _Abigail_," Riley said, exaggerating her name. "But I know when my presence is not wanted nor appreciated." His eyes narrowed into tiny slits and he directed a dirty look toward Ben before turning and storming out of the room.

"Aww, Ben…" Abigail chided, feeling sympathetic toward Riley.

Ben sighed, raking a hand through his hair. "I know, I know…"

"You should apologize."

"That was _not_ part of the plan," Ben informed her, referring to Riley's surprise serenade.

"Obviously," Abigail giggled. "I think he just wanted to contribute to your romantic plan for the evening. It was sweet that he tried."

"Yeah, yeah…"

The next time Riley returned to the table, Ben and Abigail had finished dinner and Riley was piling up their dishes.

"Thank you, Riley," Abigail said appreciatively. Riley glared at her until she realized her mistake-again. "Oh, sorry! I mean Pierre. Everything was wonderful."

"It really was," Ben agreed, his tone much milder than before. "And uh…I'm sorry about criticizing your violin playing. It was a nice thought."

Abigail smiled at Ben. Apologizing was always a difficult task for him. Riley grinned back at Ben and all tension between the two was forgotten.

"Dessert?" Riley offered.

Ben glanced at Abigail and smiled mischievously. "I've got that covered already," he said suggestively.

Abby blushed and immediately looked down at the table, her lips curved slightly upward at Ben's insinuation.

"Eew," Riley commented, making a disgusted face as he walked away with the dirty dishes.

"He's not staying all night, is he?" Abigail questioned.

Ben chuckled as he stood up, walking over to Abigail's side and holding out his hand for her again. "No, I don't think anything would have been payment enough to get him to stay through the night."

"Whew," Abigail sighed with relief.

Ben raised an eyebrow and smiled curiously. "That seemed to ease your mind," he noticed. "Are you anticipating things to get a little uncomfortable if he were to stay?"

Abigail smiled shyly at him. "Maybe…"

"Wanna give me a hint?"

"Ben!"

"What?" Ben asked innocently. "If I knew what you were thinking, I could tell you if it would make him uncomfortable."

"It would, trust me," Abigail assured him, laughing nervously.

"Hmm," Ben contemplated. "I think I might like where this is going."

"I think you might too…" She tempted.

Without any warning, Ben abruptly pulled her into his arms and made a low, feisty growling sound close to her ear before playfully nipping at it. Abigail squealed in shock as his sudden action completely caught her off guard and she burst into a fit of giggles as he clumsily walked her backward toward the bed. He captured her lips in a seductive, arousing kiss and gently pushed her shoulders down until she was seated on the edge of the bed.

"You stay right here," Ben instructed, taking a step back from her.

"Where do you think you're going?" Abby asked, reaching forward and hooking her forefingers into the belt loops on his pants, then pulling him back toward her.

"I'll be right back," Ben promised, assuring her with the look in his eyes that he wouldn't be long.

"No more surprises," she begged.

"One more," he said.

"Nope."

"Abigail…"

Abigail shook her head and began pulling his shirt out from the waistband of his pants. "No, I want you to stay right here…"

Ben grinned slyly at her and bent down to kiss her. "I think the wine is starting to have a little effect on you…"

She giggled, trying to weaken his resolve as her hands slipped under his shirt and she smoothed her fingertips over his chiseled, muscular abdomen. Ben's breath caught in his throat and he tried to fight the urge to forget the rest of his plans for the night and just let her have her way with him, but he had already made it this far.

Ben reached forward and quickly grabbed her wrists and held them at her sides. Abigail huffed and looked up at him with the pout she always gave him when she wasn't getting her way.

"Ben…"

"Abby, not yet…"

She frowned disappointedly. He wasn't usually one to reject her advances. "Why not?"

Ben let go of her wrists and cupped her face in his hands, leaning forward to place a kiss on the tip of her nose. "Because you know I am powerless to resist you…and before I let myself get completely lost in you, I have one more thing planned for you. You'll like it."

"I will?" She asked.

"Well, I hope so anyway," Ben replied nervously. "I'll be right back."

She sighed heavily and he laughed out loud.

"Then I _promise_ we can start right where we left off here, ok?"

Abigail crossed her arms over her chest. "What if I'm not in the mood then?" She challenged.

Ben smirked and leaned in close to her ear. "Then I'll bring you more wine." He playfully nipped at her earlobe again before hurrying off into the adjoining room to retrieve his final surprise for Abigail.

What he initially found was that Riley had left for the evening, and had left the kitchen a mess. There was a note on the counter near the stove and Ben picked it up, snickering as he scanned it.

'_Dear Ben, Pierre has left for the night and Riley has returned in his place. Since there's no way Riley would be doing all of these dishes, he is leaving them for you. You probably won't get to them until tomorrow but just in case things don't go as you hope, you'll have something to do while you're brooding all night. Just kidding-consider that payback for the violin comments. Good luck man. Ick…just heard Abigail squeal…thanks for the warning. That's my cue to leave.' _

Ben took a deep breath and exhaled slowly as the reality of what he was about to do was finally setting in. He was anxious and jittery, and laughed nervously to himself as he tried to remember a time where he'd ever been as on edge as he was right then. After another deep breath to try to calm his nerves, he opened the little refrigerator and pulled out two roses before returning back to the bedroom.

Abigail was sitting exactly where he'd left her, patiently waiting for him to rejoin her. She must have sensed he'd returned because she quickly looked over her shoulder and smiled warmly to see him back so quickly. Ben, on the other hand, felt a sudden surge of nausea the moment her eyes met his. _Oh my God, I don't know if I can do this… _

"I wanted to give you these," Ben said, swallowing back the feeling of sickness as he approached her.

"Oh!" Abigail cried out. "The other two roses!"

Ben nodded and handed her a deep red rose and a pure white rose that he'd tied together with a gold ribbon.

"Riley thought he lost these," Abby explained with laughter.

Ben just shook his head in amused disbelief. "Sometimes I wonder if that boy ever hears anything I tell him." He paused and took another deep breath.

"Ben?" Abigail asked with concern as she took a closer look at his face. He looked worried, and his face had gotten quite pale. She reached forward and rested her hand on his cheek. "Are you feeling ok, honey? You don't look so good."

Ben nodded, and covered her hand that was on his cheek with his own hand. He tried to smile convincingly to assure her he was fine. And he was.

_You're fine, Ben…_he thought to himself. _Look at her. She loves you…what are you afraid of? _

"You know how the other roses were color significant?" He asked her and she nodded. "Well I wanted to give you these last two when we were together, because when you give a red and a white rose together, it symbolizes – "

"Unity," Abigail blurted out before Ben had a chance to finish.

"Yes…" Ben said, watching her intently to see if she was making any kind of connection.

"I was actually really impressed with your knowledge of rose color meanings," Abigail told him, obviously not making the connection Ben was waiting for. "You really went to a lot of trouble today to make everything just perfect. Even this, you could have just included the last two roses with the other ten, but you wanted to wait until we were together to give them to me because they represent unity, oneness…a deep interconnectedness," she rambled on and on until something must have finally clicked and she suddenly stopped mid-sentence. "Wait."

Abigail searched his eyes, which she'd noticed had become less fearful and more confident in the last few minutes while she'd been rambling on about unity. It was when he smiled at her that she knew exactly what was happening. Her hands flew to her mouth in shock and she felt her body begin to tremble.

"Ben…what…you're not gonna…are you? Oh my God…Ben…oh my God…" Abigail choked out, her gaze intently fixed on him.

Ben took a deep breath and told himself it was now or never. He slowly got down on one knee, and as he looked up into her eyes, tears were already pooling inside of them. Ben reached forward and took her hand in his, holding it tightly and realizing she was already shaking and he hadn't even said a word.

"You know, um…" Ben began, hoping his voice didn't crack out of nervousness. "You know I love you, Abigail, right?" Abby nodded her head emphatically and Ben smiled at the wide-eyed expression of anticipation on her face. "I'm amazed every day when I wake up and see you beside me that such a beautiful, intelligent, caring, selfless, eloquent woman would want to be with just an ordinary guy like me," he continued. "Not that I'm complaining."

Abby laughed and the first tears fell from her eyes at the same time. Ben quickly reached up and gently wiped them away before continuing.

"I wanted to make today special for you, and I promised I'd do better than last year," he reminded her. "And I hope I've done that because that's what you deserve, Abigail. But…" Ben paused and swallowed nervously, his heart racing a mile a minute. "But…if you wanted to make today the most special day of _my_ life_..._you could say you'll marry me…"

Abigail gasped loudly, even though she knew the question was coming. More tears streamed down her cheeks and she giggled joyfully.

"Abigail?" Ben asked, holding a beautiful diamond engagement ring before her, ready for her to say the magic word so he could slip it on her finger. "Will you marry me?"

She nodded decisively, unable to form words at the moment, but it was obviously good enough for Ben because as soon as she responded in the affirmative, he immediately slipped the sparkling ring onto her finger. It was beautiful, a symbol of their future together. Ben looked back up into her eyes and grinned from ear to ear. Abigail threw her arms around his neck and knocked him over onto his back, falling on top of him and kissing him senseless.

"Do you know how much I love you right at this very moment?" Abby asked him when she was finally able to form coherent words.

"Hmm…you could show me," Ben breathed against her lips. Abigail smiled as her lips brushed his, then gradually parted and invited him into a deep, all-encompassing kiss. Ben eagerly returned her affection with an intense desire and intention of taking it much further. Without breaking their connection, Ben swept her up into his arms and placed her gently on the bed. He parted from her only long enough to quickly kick off his shoes and removed his suit jacket and tie, then joined her on the bed.

Even just looking at her nearly sent him over the edge; every slight movement of her leg, every time her chest rose and fell with each steady breath, every alluring sigh that escaped her soft lips, all inviting him to take her and love her.

Abigail's heart was racing now as he seduced her with his captivating stare. She sighed softly as she felt her whole body begin to melt. He might as well have been touching her, the effect was exactly the same. Her whole body was on fire, every inch of her begging for his familiar, perfect touch. She could almost feel the electric charge radiating from her body, and she wondered if he could tell just what his stare was doing to her.

Finally, Ben leaned forward and touched his lips to hers, then pulled back slightly and traced them with his tongue. Abby closed her eyes as he slipped his tongue into her slightly parted lips and sought hers, stroking it over and over.

"Ben," Abigail breathed against him, the heat from his kiss making her insides turn to liquid. She felt him gently press her shoulder back down to the bed and slip one of his knees in between hers as the kiss intensified. When he finally pulled back, she found herself staring up into awestruck eyes.

"You're so beautiful," Ben whispered, almost misty-eyed. He brushed several strands of hair off of her face and bent his head down, kissing her whole face with loving adoration. Her fingers curled around his neck and toyed with the back of his hair, sending tiny chills down his spine.

They took their time loving each other, exploring each other's bodies as though it were the first time. When they had both reached that point of inevitable need, Ben took her hands in his and linked his fingers around hers, kissing her over and over again as they helplessly surrendered completely to each other.

Even afterwards, Ben wouldn't let her go. Rolling to his side and onto his back, he brought her with him, kissing her with untamed joy. She sighed, exhausted and completely content as his arms wrapped gently around her back.

"I don't think I could possibly love you any more than I do right at this moment," Ben whispered in her ear.

Abigail's heart skipped a beat at the sound of his voice against her ear. She waited several seconds before replying. "How about now?" she teased.

He smiled, gently kissing her forehead. "You win."

"Ben?" Abby questioned after several minutes of just listening to his heartbeat and lazily tracing the contours of his face with her fingertips. "Can I ask you something?"

Ben looked at her. "Of course you can."

"What was the deal you made with Riley?"

"Oh yeah...the deal...are you sure you want to know?" Ben remarked.

Abby nodded, smiling curiously as she waited for an answer. "How'd you manage to motivate him to dress up as a French waiter and cook us dinner?"

Ben laughed. "Well…"

"What?"

"He wanted to be the best man at our wedding."

"Well who else would be your best man?" Abigail questioned as though there would even be a choice to be made for that role.

"And…"

"And?"

"Promise me you won't get upset, first."

"Uh oh," Abby said. "This doesn't sound good…"

Ben wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. "No no, it's nothing bad. It's just a little…preliminary…"

Abigail peered up at him. "Yes?"

"I told him he could be our first baby's Godfather," Ben said quickly, holding his breath as he waited for her reaction.

"…Baby?" Abigail finally replied several seconds later.

"Um…well I know we haven't really talked about it yet," Ben nervously explained. "I just thought…well…you've talked about having children, so I figured you'd want them eventually…but…if you don't that's ok too. I should have talked about this with you first, I know...you're not mad are you?"

"Ben," Abigail whispered, tears resurfacing in her eyes again.

"Oh no, now I upset you," Ben lamented, stroking the back of her hair soothingly.

"No no, I'm not upset," Abby assured him, leaning forward and kissing his lips tenderly. "I think Riley would make a wonderful Godfather."

"Really?" Ben asked.

Abigail nodded. "I can't think of anyone better."

"I love you, Abby."

Abigail sighed contentedly. "I love you, too, Ben. Thank you for the most amazing Valentine's Day."

Ben looked at her wide-eyed. "So I did better this time?"

"Are you kidding?" Abigail exclaimed incredulously. "I can't imagine a Valentine's Day being any more incredible than what you just did for me."

Ben hugged her tight and kissed her lightly before his lips trailed along her cheek up to her ear.

"Is that a challenge, Dr. Chase?"


End file.
